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Star Saber (Transformers weapon)
The Star Saber (sometimes spelled Star Sabre) sword was a weapon unlike any other which was wielded by Prima, one of the original thirteen Transformers at the dawn of time. Though several other swords throughout the multiverse share its name, only one could snuff out stars and crumble the stuff of planets into dust. Many legends swirl around this blade of blades, from its origin to its precise nature to the circumstances surrounding its disappearance into the annals of history, but somewhere between fiction and fact, the Star Saber waits to be discovered again by one worthy enough to wield its power... Also in Transformers: Armada, the Star Saber is a weapon created by the combination of the Mini-Con Air Defense Mini-Con Team. It is among the most powerful weapons in all existence: the only known defense against it is the Skyboom shield, though which would give first has yet to be determined. It is also unknown if the Star Saber packs more destructive power than the Requiem Blaster... but that's all really academic anyway. The point is, the Star Saber can slice and dice pretty much anything within reach, and don't you forget it. In the hands of those with evil minds, the sword itself sometimes becomes tainted, forming the Dark Saber. Transformers: Prime The Star Saber was the weapon of Prima, the first Transformer, and had the Matrix of Leadership as its hilt. In the series, the Star Saber resembles a lightsaber, and is also similar to Excalibur. TV series The Star Saber appears in the episode "Legacy", embedded in rock and Megatron recognizing the legendary weapon, is determined to keep it out of Optimus Prime's hands and orders his soldiers remove the entire rock (unable to pull out the sword). According to Smokescreen, it was created by Solus Prime and is said to contain the power of the matrix. Once Optimus recovers it, he uses it to slice said rock in half and then attacks the Nemesis with an energy wave. Back at base, he starts to receive a message from his mentor, Alpha Trion. Being an ancient relic it is quite old and part of its hilt is broken. In "Alpha; Omega", Optimus receives a pre-recorded message from Alpha Trion who explains that he sent the Star Saber and other relics to Earth to aid Optimus and the Autobots in their war with the Decepticons, he also reveals that he has sent four relics which can revive their dead homeworld, the Omega Keys. All the Autobots are excited about the possibility of returning home, believing the hunt for the keys will be easy knowing that Optimus has the Star Saber. However Megatron is quick to turn the balance of power in his favor, when Dreadwing suggests using the Forge of Solus Prime which gives Megatron an idea. Meanwhile Arcee and Smokescreen find the first Omega Key, only to be confronted by Megatron sporting a new right-hand and powerful sword. Smokescreen is hit by an energy wave and seemingly killed. Megatron spares Arcee in order for her to relay a message to Optimus Prime. Optimus wielding the Star Saber confronts Megatron, and discovers Megatron had the right hand of a deceased Prime attached to himself in order to use the Forge of Solus Prime to create his own sword, the "Dark Star Saber" (which Megatron calls the Slayer of Primes) which is forged of Dark Energon (the blood of Unicron). The two engage in an epic sword fight with the respective blades, however Megatron's Dark Star Saber manages to break the Star Saber rendering it powerless. However Optimus is saved by Smokescreen (who survived thanks to the Phase Shifter) and the two escape via ground-bridge. Optimus allows Smokescreen to keep the Shifter, however the Autobots lament over the loss of the Star Saber, but Rachet reminds them that Optimus doesn't really need it. The Star Saber is repaired in "Regeneration", when Optimus obtains the Forge of Solus Prime from Dreadwing. He uses it to duel with Megatron on Cybertron until the Omega Lock is found. In the season 2 finale "Darkest Hour" Optimus thrusts the saber into the ground as a sign of surrender but when Megatron begins to convert Earth with the Omega Lock, Optimus makes a break for the saber and uses it in a succession of strikes against vehicons, Megatron (severing his right arm) and finally, the Omega Lock, destroying it. After returning to Earth and finding their base under attack, Optimus uses the sabre to launch a wave of energy at vehicons and insecticons before retreating. After all the autobots and humans have fled through the ground bridge Optimus destroys the controls with the saber before the destruction of the base. At the beginning of season 3 the Star Saber is nowhere to be found and is not mentioned or shown amongst the Decepticon's prizes taken from the Autobot's base. In the episode "Prey" when Smokescreen is retrieving the Forge of Solus Prime from the Decepticon treasure room aboard their ship, the Star Saber is briefly seen in the background, suspended within a chamber but it is not retrieved. In "Deadlock", Bumblebee uses the Star Saber to save Optimus Prime, stabbing Megatron through the chest and killing the Decepticon leader once and for all. Fun Publications comics Long before recorded time began, Megatronus turned towards evil and began acting against his fellow siblings. To keep the all-powerful Star Saber from falling into evil hands, Nexus Prime decided to use his very body to conceal it. His fellow original Transformers Vector Prime, Alpha Trion, and Solus Prime agreed, and Solus Prime used her forge to smash the blade into five pieces. They then used the quantum edge of the blade (still functioning despite the sword's sad state), to carve Nexus himself into five pieces, each of which became an individual: Heatwave, Skyfall, Landquake, Topspin, and Breakaway. The five pieces of the Star Saber were then scattered across the multiverse, followed soon by the five components of Nexus Prime, their knowledge of the pieces' locations and of their own previous lives suppressed until such time as the sword was needed again. The blade's fragmented hilt, the Origin Matrix, was hidden on prehistoric Earth of Primax -408.24 Epsilon. Vector Prime then sealed the local spacetime in a time-lock so that no one could enter or exit. The Vok, already present to conduct one of their experiments, were entrusted with guarding the Matrix. Uncounted aeons later, the components of Nexus Prime found each other once again, and the titan was re-formed. He proceeded to embark on a multiversal journey with the negative-polarity Quintesson Aquarius in order to recover the sword fragments, but one major obstacle stood in their way: Nexus Prime's memories had not returned entirely. He knew that he was searching for an artifact powerful enough to collapse the entire multiversal stack, but could no longer remember what the artifact was, what its pieces looked like, or where exactly they were. When the pair made a stop on the Cybertron of Primax 509.28 Epsilon, however, Nexus felt that the Cybertron Elite Guard symbol he spotted on a box was somehow a clue, one that finally got him started on the right track. After unknown further adventures, Aquarius and Nexus succeeded in tracking down four of the five Star Saber fragments, with Aquarius picking up the fourth from a courier in Axiom Nexus. As payment, Aquarius then took the courier through a portal to her home dimension, but the pair were transferred by Nexus in-transit to Primax -408.24 Epsilon so that they could collect the fifth and final piece—the Origin Matrix, the gem from the blade's hilt—which had just been retrieved from its hiding place on the prehistoric Earth of that universe by Ultra Mammoth. Mammoth, however, asserted that he would personally hold onto the Matrix until Nexus Prime could come to collect it. Later, as the negative polarity Ultra Magnus was about to kill his positive polarity counterpart, Nexus Prime arrived, reformed the Star Saber with the Origin Matrix, and used it to slice Magnus's Terminus Blade-wielding arm cleanly off. The odds against him, Magnus attempted to escape, but Nexus simply used the Terminus Blade to open an interdimensional portal, exiling Magnus through it. Resolving to prevent multiversal crises such as that of Magnus's doing from ever happening again, Nexus Prime departed, traveling to a key point in interdimensional space. He then combined the powers of the Star Saber and the Terminus Blade together, strengthening the barriers between universes, rendering interdimensional travel nigh-impossible, and nullifying multiversal singularities. Transformers: Armada In Transformers: Armada, the Star Saber, formed from by the Air Defense Mini-Con Team, is one of three high-powered weapons in the Armada chapter of the Unicron Trilogy, the others being the Requiem Blaster and Skyboom Shield. The Star Saber can cut through anything, save the Skyboom Shield. Animated series The story of the Star Saber begins in the episode #11, "Ruin". During their underwater trip to the ruins of Atlantis, Rad, Carlos and Alexis (the human allies of the Autobots) discover a hologram of a young girl who tells them about the three Mini-Cons which can link up in the deadly super-weapon. The Decepticons have one of these Minis (named Sonar) while the Autobots have the remaining two (named Runway and Jetstorm). In the episode #13, "Swoop", the Decepticons warp in to the Autobot Base with the purpose to take Sonar's brethren. After Sonar awakens Runway and Jetstorm, Megatron becomes the first possessor of the Star Saber, but loses it at once thanks to the reckless attack of Hot Shot. So the Star Saber finds itself in the young Autobot's hands. Hot Shot, wielding the Star Saber, defeats almost any Decepticon (except Scavenger). So he becomes more and more overconfident though his friends warn him not to overrate his strength and not to rely upon the Star Saber too much. But soon he has to pay for his presumption. In the episode #16, "Credulous", when warped in to the D-Base by accident, Hot Shot sacrifices the Star Saber to save Sideways's life but the latter betrays him and Starscream obtains the Star Saber, much to Megatron's displeasure. In the episode #17, "Conspiracy", the Lord of the Decepticons succeedes in defrauding Starscream of the Star Saber. Since then he keeps possessing the Star Saber until he hears about the new formidable Mini-Con weapon, the Requiem Blaster, and watches it in action. In the episode #23, "Rebellion", Sideways falsely charges Starscream with plotting against the leader and convinces Megatron to use the Star Saber for chastising "the rebel". In the episode #33, "Sacrifice", the Decepticon tactician Thrust offers to Megatron his "Master Plan" to get the Requiem Blaster from the Autobots with the aid of a drawing-out maneuver. In accordance with this plan, Megatron hands over the Star Saber to Starscream again, however concealing his true intention to use him as the patsy. Starscream does his best to carry out his task, but he is soon overpowered by Jet Optimus and abandoned by the Decepticons on the battlefield. Surviving to return to the D-Base, he gets to know the truth. Being beside himself with rage, he breaks with the Decepticons and flies away to Earth, taking the Star Saber. If being possessed by a Decepticon with sufficient willpower, the Star Saber can be transformed into the Dark Saber, and this converts the trio of Mini-Cons into the Air Assault Team. Nemesis Prime, a dark twisted version of Optimus Prime, also wields a similar weapon-albeit with a darker design. The three weapons were also stolen by Thrust as the power source for the Hydra-Cannon. Dreamwave Productions In "Worlds Collide, Part 3", he feels the desire for more power, Megatron ordered the Decepticons raising the Armstrong Meat Processing and Packaging plant to capture the Air Defense Mini-Con Team. They were forcibly combined into the Star Saber. On the outskirts of Lincoln, South Dakota, Megatron used the Star Saber to slice into the ground, shaking the Autobase underneath. Megatron goaded Optimus Prime out, threatening to level the whole area. Optimus exited and was swiftly sliced by the Star Saber. Optimus somehow grabbed the Star Saber in the ground and pleaded for the individual Mini-Cons to resist whatever Megatron did to them. Megatron took the saber back but it split up into its individual Mini-Cons who turned their firepower against their former master. The team combined again for Megatron to help him defeat the dimension-hopping Galvatron. Its power allowed Megatron to be able to block a blast from Galvatron's plasma cannon. Galvatron attempted to take control of the saber but its power only flowed through Megatron. Megatron then dealt a fatal blow through Galvatron's chest. Megatron sliced Galvatron up and was ready to take on the rest of the world, but the Land Military Team fired upon the Star Saber, knocking it out of his hand and letting it split apart. IDW Generation 1 According to the Way of Flame, the Star Saber was forged by Solus Prime during the era of the Thirteen and wielded by their leader, Prima, with the photonic crystal that would become the Matrix of Leadership adorning its hilt. Alpha Trion regarded the sword as a 'metaphor made real,' considering it unbeatable by 'ordinary' Cybertronians. The day that Solus first created the Star Saber was the day that Onyx Prime realized that he would need to set in motion the events that would eventually lead to the First Cybertronian Civil War—as the bestial Prime was, in reality, a convenient identity assumed by a temporally-displaced Shockwave, who knew that the Matrix embedded in the sword's hilt would one day find its way into the care of Prima's follower Nova. Shockwave thus engineered a situation that led to Onyx's follower Megatronus attempting to overthrow Prima. Solus Prime wielded the Star Saber to defend her leader's life, but Megatronus was able to seize the sword and fatally impale her. Seeking to bring Megatronus to justice, Prima brought his weapon with him when he, Trion, and "Onyx Prime" set off to search for Megatronus among the stars. When they found him on the planet Tsiehshi, Megatrous was once again able to turn the sword back on its wielder and easily bisected Prima. His usefulness at an end, "Onyx" subsequently killed Megatronus and lied to Alpha Trion that Prima had heroically slain Megatronus in a duel at the cost of his own life. It is not known what became of the Star Saber following the deaths of both its wielders, but, at the dawn of Cybertron's subsequent Golden Age, possession of the Matrix did indeed fall to Nova, now Nova Prime — just as Shockwave had intended, and history had foretold. A statue of Prima within the Grand Imperium depicted him with the blade, as did another adorning the Primal Basilica. Video games ''Transformers: Devastation'' The Star Saber was one of the melee weapons that the Autobots could find in their quest to stop Megatron. It was usable by any of the Autobots. Toys 'Armada' *'Air Defense Team' (Mini-Con Team, 2002/2003) **''Japanese ID number:'' MM-02 :A trio of high-tech jets, Runway, Jetstorm, and Sonar can combine to form the Star Saber sword, which can be held by any other Transformer that has 5mm fist-holes. The Team's main body is cast in transparent plastic in order to utilize the light-up-fist gimmicks in Super Mode Optimus Prime and the Takara releases of Hot Shot. Unfortunately, because of the placement of opaque parts and the lack of a continuous light path from handle to tip, the light-up effect is less than successful. It also does not hold together terribly well, and will easily fall apart due to gravity alone. :For the Team's Takara release, they were available both as an individual set, and in a multi-pack with Hot Shot. :This mold-set was used to make the Takara Vorpal Saber, and remolded to make the Energon Saber, Blizzard Saber, and the Chaos Saber. *'Air Defense Micron X-Dimension' (Mini-Con Team, 2003) **''Japanese ID number:'' MM-07 :A redeco of the Air Defense Team was available in a shorter run in Japan. The X-Dimension Air Defense Team changed the opaque plastics to orange and red, and the paint trim to match. Though fans have dubbed the combined form the "Fire Saber", this name does not appear to be official. This deco of the Star Saber was later repurposed as the Pyro Saber. *'Air Defense Micron' (Candy toy, 2003) :Available only in individual boxes each with a small bag of sugar-pellet candy, the Kabaya candy toy version of the Team replaced the clear plastics with opaque white. This version is actually a completely new mold-set, with various small differences from the Hasbro/Takara releases. *'Air Defense Micron' (Micron Booster, 2003) :Part of the first Micron Booster set sold only in individual blind-packed boxes, this version of the Team is almost wholly identical to the normal retail release. The only difference is that this version is cast in slightly-sparkly plastic and uses slightly-sparkly paint. The difference is almost unnoticeable unless you look at the two versions side-by-side. *'Air Assault Team' (Mini-Con Team, 2003) :A "tainted by evil" redeco of the Team released by Hasbro, this version of the trio replaces the transparent plastic with opaque off-white, the other colors turning predominantly black and purple. :This coloration was altered for the Takara Air Assault Mini-Con Team, who are separate characters from the Air Defense Team. *'Air Defense Micron Anime Color' (Mini-Con Team, 2003) :Cast entirely in blue and clear-blue plastics, this incarnation of the Team is supposed to represent the Star Saber as it appears in the cartoon, with a glowing blue "energy blade". It was only available as a pack-in with the CD single of the Micron Legend cartoon ending theme, "Never Ending Road". ''Prime'' *'Optimus Prime' (Voyager, 2012) **''Series / Number'': 01 / 001 **''Accessories'': Battle blaster/Cannon & battle sword :Prime: Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime includes a sword which, although not acknowledged on the packaging as such, is based on the Star Saber's show model. The hilt is slightly modified from the original design, losing the hand guard and gaining a wider pommel, whilst the blade has accurate detailing but is vastly scaled down from its gargantuan show proportions. The Saber has a 5mm handle, with an additional post and post hole on opposite sides of the hilt. *'Battle Shield Optimus' (Voyager, 8-12-2012) **''Accessories'': "O.P. A", "Pral G", "Sais G", "Jayz G" Arms Microns, sword, trailer :Exclusive to Japanese ToysЯUs stores, Optimus Prime is a redeco of the Arms Micron version of the figure and includes a recolored version of the Star Saber, cast in a darker, warmer shade of gray. *'Arms Master Optimus' (Weaponizer, 9-29-2012) **''ID Number:'' AM-21 **''Accessories'': "R.A." Arms Micron & Matrix Blade :Part of the seventh wave of TakaraTomy Prime toys, the Japanese release of Weaponizer Class Optimus Prime comes with a very large Matrix which can tab onto his chest as armor or mount onto the back of the truck cab, with the Matrix also being covered in 5mm posts and holes so that Arms Microns can be attached to it. He additionally comes with a clear-blue "Shining" version of the Arms Micron, R.A., who can combine with the Matrix to form the colossal Matrix Saber. *'Optimus Prime' (Dark Energon Voyager, 2012) **''Number'': 002 **''Accessories'': Battle blaster/Cannon, battle sword :Prime: Dark Energon Optimus Prime is a BigBadToyStore-exclusive redeco/retool of RID Optimus Prime, and includes the Star Saber, colored a pale blue. ''Cyberverse'' *'Optimus Prime' (Cyberverse Commander, 2013) **''Series / Number'': 3 / 001 **''Accessories'': Launcher & missile (combine to form Thunder Lance), Star Saber :Part of the first wave of Prime: Beast Hunters [[Cyberverse (toyline)#Series 3|Series 3 Cyberverse]] Commander Class toys, Optimus Prime is an all-new mold, and comes with the Star Saber. The Star Saber features 3mm posts for its handle and on its hilt, allowing it to be held by his hands, or mount onto one of the two ports on the rear sides of his vehicle mode. *'Optimus Prime vs Predaking' (Cyberverse Commander 2-pack, 2013) **''Accessories'': Launcher & missile (combine to form Thunder Lance), Star Saber :Part of the Target-exclusive "Predacons Rising" subline, Optimus Prime is a redeco of his Series 3 Cyberverse Commander Class toy. He still comes with the Star Saber. *'Beast Blade Optimus Prime' (Cyberverse Commander, 2013) **''Series / Number'': 3 / 008 **''Accessories'': Launcher & missile (combine to form Thunder Lance), Star Saber, Battlewing Shield :Part of the fourth wave of Prime: Beast Hunters Cyberverse Commander Class toys, Beast Blade Optimus Prime is a jungle-themed green and blue redeco of his Series 3 Cyberverse Commander Class toy. The Star Saber is still included, and is unchanged from the original release. ''Beast Hunters'' *'Optimus Prime' (Voyager, 2013) **''Series / Number'': 2 / 001 **''Japanese ID number:'' G11 **''Accessories:'' Two "Ionic pulse launchers"/"Eaglefire missile launchers", two missiles, Star Saber :Part of the first wave of Prime: Beast Hunters Voyager Class toys, Optimus Prime is a larger, all-new mold, and comes with a larger version of the Star Saber. The Star Saber features 5mm posts for its handle and on its hilt, allowing it to be held by his hands, or mount onto various ports on his backpack, front wheel panels, or upper wings. ''Go! *'Hunter Optimus Prime''' (Voyager, 4-27-2013) **''Japanese ID number:'' G11 **''Accessories:'' Two missile launchers, two missiles, Matrix Saber :Part of the first wave of TakaraTomy Go! toys, Hunter Optimus Prime is a redeco of the Voyager Class "Beast Hunters" Optimus Prime toy. His "Matrix Saber" has been redecoed with a translucent blue blade, and uses a bluer shade of gunmetal paint for its hilt and handle, accurate to the Saber's depiction and color in the cartoon. Merchandise ''Armada'' *'Star Saber' (Role-play toy, 2003) *'Dark Saber' (Role-play toy, 2003) :Two versions of the same mold in different colors (even with different paint application layouts), the role-play version of the Star Saber / Dark Saber is a toy blade about thirteen inches long. Swinging the toy causes electronic "whooshing" sounds followed by a "clank" of metal-on-metal; the Mini-Con sigil also lights up. Pulling down on the tailfin in the middle of the blade portion swings up a pair of clear-plastic "energy" blades to surround the main one, as well as activating power-up noises. In this form (which is not appreciably longer than the other), swinging the toy produces a more impressive-sounding "crashing" noise after the "whoosh". ''Super Collection Figure'' *'Convoy Super Mode' (2003) :A special "chase" version of the Super Mode Armada Optimus Prime PVC figurine, from "ACT-9" of the Super Collection Figure series, holds the Star Saber rather than his normal hand-cannon. *'Convoy Normal Mode' (Mega Super Collection Figure, 2003) **''MSCF ID number:'' TF-12 :The non-super mode version of MSCF Armada Optimus Prime comes with a large Star Saber accessory: its blade is mainly detail-less clear-blue plastic to resemble its cartoon appearance. Notes 'Transformers: Armada' *The Star Saber takes the form of an energy bladed weapon during use, meaning no combining toy is actually able to replicate its completed form. *In the English-language dub of the Energon animated series, the Energon Sword forged from Megatron's spark is mistakenly referred to as the Star Saber on one occasion. *In the [[Transformers: Armada (Dreamwave)|Dreamwave Armada continuity]], the very concept of the Star Saber is coined by Megatron and it is under his ministrations that the Air Defense team develops this ability to combine. As a result, Megatron is the only individual to wield the Star Saber, and it only appears in its "evil" colors in spite of never being referred to as the Dark Saber. 'Transformers: Prime' *At BotCon 2010, Fun Publications said that Hasbro had, in effect, taken custody of the character of Nexus Prime due to their plans for the Thirteen. Because of this, Fun Pub was unable to directly continue the story of Nexus Prime's quest for a long time, only able to make small nods to the storyline in magazine issues #48 and #54 before finally resolving the quest in 2015 in issue #65. *The exact connection between Nexus Prime and the Star Saber in the Aligned novels is a bit of a mess, simply because Exiles is so riddled with plotting and continuity errors that it's hard to tell if the "Cyber Caliber" is actually a different sword from the Star Saber, or if the book just used the wrong name for a few pages. While continuity between the Prime cartoon and the novels is decidedly wobbly, the sword's later appearance in the cartoon—while probably not intended to solve the novel's errors—can be seen to suggest that Nexus never had the Star Saber, that just being another of the many myths surrounding the blade. *The Star Saber was taken out of action almost immediately after its introduction in the Prime cartoon, presumably to keep a weapon so powerful that Megatron feared it from destroying the show's status quo. Even when it was reconstructed in the second season finale, it played absolutely no role in the story until the series finale, and even then, it was in the hands of non-Primes, rendering it an ordinary but giant sword. Foreign names 'Transformers: Armada' *''Japanese:'' Star Saber (スターセイバー Sutā Seibā) *''Finnish:'' Tähtimiekka ("Starsword") *''Hungarian:'' Pengeél ("Blade's Edge") *''Italian:'' Spada Stellare ("Stellar Sword") *''Korean:'' Star Saber (스터세이버 Seuteo Seibeo) *''Mandarin:'' Xīngchén Jiàn (星辰剑, "Star Sword") *''Polish:'' Gwiezdny miecz ("Stellar sword") *''Russian:'' Zvyozdniy mech (Звездный меч, "Star sword") *''Swedish:'' Stjärnsabeln ("Star Saber") 'Transformers: Prime' *''Japanese:'' Matrix Saber (マトリクスセイバー Matorikusu Seibā) *''German:'' Sternensäbel ("Starsaber") *''Mandarin:'' Xīngchén Jiàn (China, 星辰剑, "Star Sword") *''Portuguese:'' Sabre da Estrela (Brazil, "Star Saber") *''Spanish:'' Sable Estrella ("Star Saber") Category:Artifacts of the Primes Category:Iacon relics Category:IDW Generation 1 weapons Category:Mini-Con weapons Category:Prime weapons Category:Sabers Category:Wings Universe Category:Transformers objects